Undercover Investigation Part 2
City Limits: More high paid city officials found not living in Providence
We continue our Investigators Exclusive Tonight into high ranking Providence city officials who apparently violate the city's residency requirements.
The Providence tax assessor's office and the office of tax collector were involved in the Plunder Dome corruption case. New people were put in place to clean up the operations...but now the integrity of some of those people is in question.
This is John Gelati leaving his home in Cumberland for his job in providence as acting tax assessor. He's paid $79,000 a year. He's required to live in Providence. He says he does. But the evidence says otherwise.
�We are doing a story on residency requirements and you do not live in Providence as required. No that's not true. We've been at your house a number of times and we've watched you leave Marywood lane . That's not correct.�
He says he lives in this house at 19 Summit Ave. In Providence . But our undercover cameras caught Gelati leaving 6 Marywood Lane in Cumberland - we've seen him leave that location at about 8 a.m.
On each of the five days of our surveillance.
�Why are you leaving Marywood lane in the morning on a very consistent basis? there are sometimes personal reasons why people live in places and have to attend them regularly and it's a private matter.�
While Gelati oversees the process by which taxes are determined on properties in Providence, he paid $2,600 in real estate tax last year on the house he owns, apparently with his mother, at 6 Marywood lane in Cumberland . Last year he listed his address on a campaign contribution as 6 Marywood lane, Providence, an address that does not exist.
Marywood lane is in Cumberland ."] his car is registered in Cumberland . He's registered to vote in cumberland . And he's lsited in the phonebook as living in Cumberland . Maria Mansolillo is a $58,000 dollar a year assistant providence tax collector shown here at 404 Auburn , st. In cranston . Her campaign contributions and voter registration list her address as 35 Glocester St., in providence. But the investigators undercover camera caught her on many occasions leaving the auburn street address in cranston for work and returning there after work.
We confronted Mansolillo in city hall.
�We're doing a story on residency requirements and we want to know why you don't live in the city as you are supposed to. I do live in the city.you live on Auburn street . (did you sign a residency form?)�
The Auburn street property in cranston is listed in the Cranston tax book under the name of Maria Mansolillo's husband raymond, who is a well-known retired federal drug agent. Maria Mansolillo has held several positions in city hall since she was hired four years ago.
There are other city employees who say they live in providnce but actually live elsewhere. Several city council members told me after being made aware of our investigation that they will be taking a long hard look at people who violate the city's residency requirement.
We'll get mayor David Cicilline's reaction to our exclusive reports when he joins Jack in-studio here Friday for the taping of our newsmakers program.
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